Public Intelligence

G8/G20 summits security map (BBC):

The G8 summit of leaders from France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK, US, Canada and Russia is being held at the Deerhurst Resort on the outskirts of Huntsville, 215km (133 miles) from Toronto.

The resort is closed to public, with restrictions in force on local roads, the nearby Peninsula Lake, as well as airspace closures.

A ring of steel has gone up around the Metro Toronto Convention Centre area for the G20 summit which will take place after the G8 summit.

The “lockdown” of central Toronto includes a 3m-high (10ft), 3.5km (2.2-mile) concrete and metal fence enclosing the G20 meeting area and a huge security presence. Banks and theatres will be closed, as will one of Canada’s most famous tourist attractions – the CN Tower.

The Integrated Security Unit responsible for security over the summit period of 25-27 June, is made up of Royal Canadian Mounted Police, regional and city police and the Canadian military forces.

Many Canadians have balked at the $1.1bn (US$1.1bn; £730m) cost of hosting the summit.

What to expect this weekend in ‘Fortress Toronto’ (Toronto Star):

Call it Fortress Toronto.

The fenced area around the Metro Convention Centre is under a lockdown, and there are more police officers than ordinary citizens on the streets. Wait, there’s more: protesters are flooding the downtown core and the well-heeled are fleeing.

This is downtown Toronto — this last weekend of June.

“It could be lots of fun, it could be downright miserable,” said Sgt. Tim Burrows, media relations officer for the Integrated Security Unit, in charge of security for the G8 and G20 summits. “What the protesters decide to bring is what we will respond to.”

We’ll see protesters of every stripe and colour, Burrows said.

If they bring a “party atmosphere and just want to yell and be boisterous, that’s great. We’ll stand all day and listen. But if protesters bring violence, we’ll respond to that,” he said.

Burrows is expecting “several thousand protesters.” Be prepared, he warned.

We’ll see what really happens. But this is what is already happening: the fenced area was to come under lockdown sometime in the wee hours of Friday. Now, only those people who live or work in the area and have obtained security clearance can enter.